Molding apparatus.



No; 720,408. PATENTED FEB. 10,1903.

E. (moss. MOLDING APPARATUS.

\ APPLICATION FILED OCT. 11, 1902. N0 MODEL. 2 SHEETS-SHEET'I.

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E. GROSS. MOLDING APPARATUS.

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UNITED STATES PATENT 7 O CE.

- EDWIN onoss', or URNHAM, rENusYLvANIA. f

MOLDING APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. .7 20,408,datedEebruary 10, 1903.

1 Application filecl October 11, 1 902. SerialNo. 126,895. (No model) Toall whom, it may concern;

Be it known that I, EDWIN CROSS, a citizen of the United States,residing at Burnham, in the county of Miftlin and State ofPennsylvania,have invented new and useful Improvements in MoldingApparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a molding apparatus; and the object of theinvention is to provide an efficient: device of this character 7for'rapidly handling trucks or carriages sup-- porting the fiasks thetracks upon which the trucks or carriages travel being so constructedthat they cannotbe'come clogged with sand, to thereby interfere with theproper propulsion of said trucks. 'In the present case the I track uponwhich the trucks travel has a movable section, and this movable sectionis preferably arranged j, for vertical movement, so that'a truck carriedthereby can be ele vated to the rammer, by virtue of which the sand 'nthe flask can be more uniformly pack (1 or rammed. By reason, also, ofthis feature the journals of the truck can extend beyond the movabletracksection, so as to not receive thestress of the ramming operation. Iprefer to make the track of annular form, by reason of .which I amenabled to simultaneously handle a large number of trucks-six, forexample--a man to each truck,

so that the ramming operation can be made practically a continuous one.The rails con stituting the track arepf peculiar construe tion, theybeing of channeled or grooved form to receive the correspondingly 'orsubstan tially correspondingly shapedperipheries of the wheels of therespective trucks, and the channels have openings for the escape of sandthat may fall thcreinto during the packing of the flasks by theattendants, the openings being in the present instance at or along thebottoms of the rails. The ties that sustain the rails at points belowthe'openings in the latter are oflwedge or knife-edge f0rm,so that theaccumulation of sand at these points is not possible. The rails may bemade of segments suitably united together and easily and inexpensivelyproduced by casting. The

annular track, of course, may be of a size that can best be accommodatedin the shop or foundry inwhich it is installed.

The invention is-clcarly illustrated in the spaced apart a suitabledistance.

accompanyingdrawings,formingapartofthis specification, and in whichrFigure 1 is a plan View of amolding appa- Like characters refer tolikeparts in the several figures.

While the invention is not limited to the shaping of the track in anyparticular mannor, it is illustrated ,and will be hereinafterdescribed'as beingof annular form, the same being upheld by thefoundation 2 of a shape corresponding with the track and sunk into I thefloor with its upper face substantially level with said floor. Thefoundation, it'will be understood, is of a form corresponding with thetrack, and uponits upper face at suitable intervals are laid the ties3,'ofany suitable material. They may be of. wood or cast metal. and theyare arranged concentrically and are The rails consist of segments 5,which may be in the form of castings, and each segment, it will be seen,consists of two wings or cheeks arranged a little less than a rightangle to each 'other and'resting upon the ties 3. In other words, thesegments are substantially V-shaped in cross-section. or checks of therespective segments are separated,-except for the verynarrow web 6 alongIt will be seen that the wings.

The rails are each denoted by 4:,

their lower edges, to provide openings 7 for v the escape of sand thatmight fall into the segments during the packing of flasks mounted upontrucks adapted to travel on the track. The webs 6, it will be seen, areof wedgeform, their apexes being uppermost, so that they are adaptedto'shed any sand that may fall thereonto. The segments terminate upontheir lower outer sides in lateral ears 8, through which bolts orsimilar fastening devices Q'car: pass, said bolts being adaptedto beconnected in some suitable manner to the roe 3 it will be seen that thesegments of the re-' spective tracks abut each other and at theirendaare provided with ears or lugs to receive bolts, rivets, orotherfastening devices by which the said segments can be rigidlyconnected together to form, in effect, unitary rails. It will be seen,therefore, that the track comprises two annular rails, one arrangedwithin the other, and upon which trucks or carriages can travel andwhich are of grooved form and have openings in their bottoms for theescape of sand that may fall off the trucks while the flasks thereon arebeing packed. The ties have wedge or knife-edge portions 11, the apexesof which are arranged under the openings 7, it being understood that theupper or beveled edges of said wedges extend transversely of saidopenings, by reason of which the sand after it passes through saidopenings cannot accumulate upon the ties, the inclined sides of the saidwedges preventing such result. The trucks which travel upon the'tracksare denoted by 12, and they include bodies of a size suitable toaccommodate a flask and its appurtenances and provided with projectingarms 13, in which the wheels 14 are journaled. It will be seen that theperipheries of the wheels are shaped to agree with the roove or channelof the rails 4, so that any sand falling upon the said peripheriescannot lodge thereon, but drops fromthe same into the channels andfromthence through the openings 7.

The track includes a movable section 15,

which in the present case is mounted for rising-and-falling movement, sothat the flask carried by the track thereon can be elevated by 'suitablepower to the rammer head or block for the purpose of packing the sand insaid flask, and the movable section 15 of the track is of such lengththat the wheels 14, or

rather the journals of -said wheels, project be-' yond the movablesection or platform, so that when the latter is elevated to ram the sandin the flask the pressure due to the ramming operation cannot bepossibly transmitted to said journals. The movable section or platform15 of the track has upon its under side the depending plunger orpiston15, fitted into the cylinder 16 and adapted to vertically traveltherein. An inlet-pipe 16 for compressed air or other motive agent leadsinto said cylinder 16 for the purpose of supplying compressed air or itsequivalent thereto in order to elevate the plunger, and consequently thetrack section or platform 15. Whenthe latter is elevated, the flask uponthe truck is carried to the rammer-block 19 upon the cross-piece 18 tocompress the sand -in the flask. The ram mer-block 19 is securedconsequently the truck carried thereby.

The track is adapted to support a large number of trucks. veryconveniently handled, one operator performing one operation while theothers are performing other operations, and duri ngthis time the rammingmechanism can e working, so that the ramming operation is practically acontinuous one, and by reason of the construction of the track the samecannot possibly be clogged with sand used in packing the flasks.

It will be remembered that the track upon which the trucks travel is ofannular form. This is particularly advantageous, as the trucks alwaysmove in the same direction and not forward and then backward, as is thecase with a straight track or one of a similar nature. By making thetrack annulara number of trucks can be used. At the commencement ofoperation an empty flask will be placed by an operator on a truck andthe latter advanced to a second operator, who puts facing-sand in theflask. The second operator then advances the truck to a third operator,who fills the flask with heap or common sand and then advances the truckto a fourth operator, who places the ramming-board on top of the flaskand advances the truck to a fifth operator, who positions the truck withits flask on the movable track-section, so that the latter can beelevated to effect the ramming of the contents of the flask. hen theramming operation is concluded, the movable track-section will belowered and the truck moved off said movable track-section, so that theflask and its contents can be taken therefrom, after which the truckwill be moved empty to the first operator. The operation described ispractically a continuous As many as six can be one, and a large numberof tlllCkS.-Sa.y sixcan be simultaneously handled.

From the preceding description it will be understood that my improvedmolding apparatusincludes the combination, with a fixed rammer, ot atrack having a section movable toward said rammer, so that theflask-carrying truck upon said movable track-section can be carriedtoward the ramlner to thereby bring the flask on said truck against therammer in order to pack the sand therein in a dense uniform condition.

The apparatus is comparatively simple. It can be readily andinexpensively assembled and can be made of a size to suit that of theshop or foundry in which it is installed.

The invention is'in no wise limited to the foregoing construction and tothe formation of any of the parts of any particular material.

Having described the invention, what 'I claim istrack-section, and atruck provided with roll-' ers journaled at its ends, to travel on thetrack, and said journals being arranged to extend outward beyond theopposite sides of said movable track-section when the truck thereon iselevated.

2. In a molding apparatus, a rail consisting of two sections separatedat their lower edges and diverging from each other toward their upperedges and narrow webs uniting said sections in proximity to their loweredges to thereby hold said sections in proper relation with each other.

3. In a molding apparatus a rail consisting of two sections separated attheir lower edges and'diverging from each other toward their upper edgesand narrow, wedge-shaped webs uniting said sections in proximity totheir loweredges to hold them in proper relation to each other.

4. In a molding apparatus, the combination of a rammer, a track havinggrooved rails each rail having an opening in its hottom for the escapeof sand, and ties for supporting the rails each tie having wedge-shapedportions arranged under the openings and the apexes of said wedge-shapedportions be ing up. Y

5. In a molding apparatus, the combination of a rammer, an annular trackconsisting of grooved rails having openings in their bottoms, and saidtrack having a section movable toward said rammer, and a truck havingwheels the peripheries of which are shaped to agree with and to fit intothe grooves of said rails.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of twosubscribing witnesses.

EDWIN CROSS.

Witnesses:

JOHN WELLATT, WALTER I. MINNICK.

